The present invention relates to a medical laser knife having a rod member adapted to emit, a laser beam while in contact with tissue making it possible to coagulate body fluids or cut the tissue. More particularly, the invention relates to means for supplying water to the end of the rod member to prevent adhesion of burnt materials thereto.
Conventionally, there are practiced surgical treatments where a laser beam is transmitted through fiber optics to a transparent rod member and the rod member is brought into contact with tissue to either coagulate the body fluids associated therewith or to cut the tissue. In such surgical treatments, the laser beam is applied directly to the tissue and the rod member may be held directly on the tissue whereupon coagulated body fluids or the diseased tissue may stick to the rod member. Inasmuch as this material must be removed for effective operation of the device there are provided conventional means of applying a jet of distilled water to the rod member during its use.
Generally, laser knives are provided with a gas supply system for passing a gas stream over the end of the fiber conducting the laser beam. In order to provide a separate water supply system to apply water to the end of the rod member, it has been necessary to modify a part of the gas supply system and to provide a separate water supplying system that includes a pump. Such a separate water supply system with its attendant pump is a disadvantage in such devices because it is an entirely separate subsystem that must be manufactured and supplied with the device. It has been the practice to pass water within the clearance between the fiber optics transmitting the laser beam and a hollow tube surrounding the fiber optics. Such a configuration has, however, serious drawbacks in that when water is passed through the space between the fiber optics and a surrounding hollow pipe, water drops remain within that space after use of the device. This is undesirable where gas or air is also to be jetted and adversely affects the sterilization of the laser knife, both of which are serious drawbacks to conventional devices.
It is an object of this invention to eliminate the above-described shortcomings of conventional laser knives. More specifically, it is an object of the invention to provide a laser knife which, in order to supply water to the end of the rod member transmitting laser beam instead of a separate water supply system, the air supplying mechanism provided for an ordinary laser knife is utilized.